There are numerous occupations, e.g. sales, where it is convenient or necessary to carry an assortment of catalogs, brochures, tools, samples, utensils, files, etc. in an automobile, van, or other vehicle.
The traveling salesperson and members of related occupations are required to travel from place to place, carrying various items, e.g. catalogs, pamphlets, and other sales presentation materials. In many cases, the salesman is required to carry brochures, sales invoices, order forms, and other materials that can only be efficiently stored in file folder devices. In other cases, the number of catalogs and other materials that are needed to fully support sales activities are so numerous that the storage of such items in a vehicle presents a serious problem that interferes with an effective presentation to the customer. This is particularly the case for the salesperson whose company has many items in its products line, or who is a sales representative for more than one company, or who must leave fresh catalogs and other sales literature, order blanks, etc., with many customers.
Sales personnel frequently travel numerous miles in automobiles making sales calls. During these trips, catalogs, files, and other materials can easily get soiled, destroyed, or disorganized during the transportation process. Further, a well organized storage system would save the salesperson valuable time in selecting the proper materials from among the many that he may be required to carry.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,964 to Phirippidis discloses a storage and organizer system for-catalogs and samples for use in automobiles, vans, and motor vehicles. The disclosed system is interlocking in that the system includes individual components, e.g. a main trough unit, and an auxiliary storage unit, that can be attached, affixed, or interlocked together into a single transportable unit. There are several shortcomings with the Phirippidis system. In order to interlock the auxiliary box with a main trough unit a locking lip or flange of the auxiliary box must be placed under a corresponding lip or flange of the main trough box. This is very difficult to accomplish if the boxes are located in a remote or cramped space in the vehicle. Also, a certain amount of clearance or open space is required surrounding the sides of the main trough box in order to angle in the auxiliary box under the lip of the main trough box. Further, the interlocking relationship is difficult to maintain if the main trough and auxiliary boxes are disposed on an uneven surface. Uneven surfaces cause the boxes to tilt with respect to one another and to disengage the locking flanges from one another. Finally, the auxiliary box cannot be hung onto or off of an adjacent main trough box unit or, for that matter, any other box unit of the system.
Another shortcoming of the system disclosed by Phirippidis, is that it is not well suited for storing hanging file folder style items (e.g. Pendaflex.RTM. style file folders). While there are other products in the prior art for storing hanging file style folders, there are many deficiencies associated with these products. Many products are not well suited for transport in vehicles, e.g. some such products do not have handles for carrying, others do not have non-skid surfaces to prevent sliding during transport. Also, some products although stackable one on top of the other, are not interlocking. That is, the individual file storage boxes cannot be latched or hooked onto a side, back or front of another individual file storage box or similar type box. Finally, none of these products can simultaneously hang, in one box, both letter and legal sized file folders. Frequently, one box can hang either legal or letter sized files by inserting legal sized files into the box in one direction (i.e., width-wise) or by inserting letter sized files into the box in another direction (i.e., length-wise). However, only legal or letter sized files may be hung in the box at any one time.
In the prior art, storage systems with interlocking components are frequently disposed onto a floor surface of a vehicle. In many vehicles the floor surface is uneven and keeping the components attached together becomes impossible to achieve or difficult to maintain. Also, once the interlocking storage system is fully assembled at one region on the vehicle floor, it is very cumbersome to maneuver the system to a different region of the vehicle floor. In many larger vehicle, e.g. vans and trucks, where there is considerable interior space available, such systems cannot be maneuvered about to accommodate changing space needs.
Prior art storage systems may be disposed on passenger seats of vehicles. However, the prior art systems are prone to slippage and excessive motion because they are not configured with motion restraining means for securing the system, or its components, in place on the seat. Also, such systems may damage leather or other fine upholstery when disposed on vehicle seats.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved interlocking storage system which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art.